Third Trango Tower (Trango Pulpit) from camp across the Baltoro Glacier, after an overnight dusting. Great Trango stands behind to the left; Nameless Tower (Second Trango) is hidden behind it.
About May 25, 1988
The slightly-lower peak at the front-right of Third Trango is called Trango Castle, and being below 6,000 meters (It's 5753m / 18870 feet.), it can be climbed without a mountaineering permit. It's a relatively short hike (3 days?) from the road, by Himalayan standards, and only one day on the glacier. That means fewer porters, therefore much lower cost to go there.
Doug and I approached Trango from across the glacier, but found out later that was unnecessary. You can hike directly to it along the N edge of the glacier from Paiyu Camp, skirting the bases of Paiyu and Uli Biaho. You cross two side glaciers, but both were snow-free in May/June, so we didn't feel the need to rope up at all.
A huge boulder under the SW corner of the peak shelters dry bivy sites for about 6. Or skirt up the edge of the Trango Glacier to beneath the W side of Great Trango, where you'll find a few football fields' worth of flat, smooth sand.
The granite walls are superb quality; the gullies are full of the usual crap. The South face, above the Baltoro, had a French team working up it when Doug and I arrived. One obstacle that limits route choices is the glacial debris plastered to the lower face. Standing on the moraine beside the glacier, you look up maybe 60 or 100 meters at patches of mud and boulders stuck to the almost-sheer face. There are gaps in the stuff, or the face wouldn't be worth considering. In the picture above, the debris-covered ice hills in the foreground hide the lower face.
Comments [ Post a Comment ]| justahiker | Beautiful photo! | | 
Voted 10/10 | Really powerful!
| | Posted Jan 30, 2008 1:46 am |
| bordop | my god | | 
Voted 10/10 | word | | Posted Jan 30, 2008 2:12 am |
| Tomek Lodowy | Majestic | | 
Voted 10/10 | that's big! | | Posted Jan 30, 2008 8:27 am |
| Fabrice.Rimlinger | Mighty view... | | 
Voted 10/10 | powerfull mountains indeed ! | | Posted Jan 30, 2008 10:40 am |
 | | Eric Sandbo | Re: Looks... | | 
Hasn't voted | It turned into a brilliant Spring day. I went swimming that afternoon. Just up the valley a glacier comes off the East Masherbrum Group, melting just long enough to make a little lake, dammed by the Baltoro Glacier. I was alone, waiting to intercept porters coming down from Urdukas camp, and aware of the scuz I'd been collecting since bathing in the hot springs near Askole. So I stripped, waded in, and dunked myself. Then I wished I had a towel - the porters were carrying most of my gear. It was still daylight, but the sun was down behind the mountains, and I was out in the breeze at the junction of two glacier valleys. So I walked in circles on the sand until I dried enough to put my clothes back on.
Think of that next time someone tells you they've seen a yeti. :) | | Posted Jan 30, 2008 5:17 pm |
| Eric Sandbo | Thanks | | 
Hasn't voted | Thanks, guys, for the kind words. Third Trango is worth consideration as a climb. Beautiful granite, sunshine (mostly), and just low enough to not require a mountaineering permit. I'll put more in the caption when I have the time. | | Posted Jan 30, 2008 2:42 pm |
| Karrar Haidri | Very Nice | | 
Voted 10/10 | and well captured,Thanks for sharing. | | Posted Feb 3, 2008 2:20 am |
| RayMondo | Both Majestic and Mystic | | 
Voted 10/10 | Truly a stunning spectacle with both incredible presence and power. The wispy cloud and foreground snow dusting set the scene.
I am seeing so many great shots that, I begin to suffer (benefit) from Hyper-oxygenation. The more I look, the more my lungs fill and I come alive. | | Posted Sep 23, 2009 4:09 pm |
 | | Eric Sandbo | Re: Both Majestic and Mystic | | 
Hasn't voted | Thanks. I wish I could say I arranged it all, but it's just what we woke up to that morning. I'll admit I'm biased, but I think we've got a pretty nice planet here. | | Posted Sep 24, 2009 12:45 am |
 | | RayMondo | Re: Both Majestic and Mystic | | 
Voted 10/10 | Planet - we have a great one. Though I'm into astronomy - the probability that there are others as good, are high. Guess that leaves us all with endless places to explore. In a couple of years, I should be making my first space trip! | | Posted Sep 25, 2009 5:04 am |
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